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Having grown up on the farm we have raised, nursed back to health and found good homes for many a tame pet as well as wild creatures. The farm has been in the family for several generations and was a wonderful experience growing up. My entire childhood was spent there learning how to care for and about animals.

My goal has always been to help those in need as much as possible so after graduating from Coleman Area High School, my next stop was Delta College followed by Central Michigan University, then CMU School of Graduate Studies and finally the United Nations. Here it was possible to serve those most in need on the widest scale possible! After completing my endeavors with the UN I came back to Michigan to see my mother through her final stages of cancer. Since that time my career has turned to being a professor at Delta College where my knowledge and background can be most helpful to my students.

However, there are still those in the most need, our little furry friends who give us unconditional love and in some cases, get betrayed regardless of circumstances. For this reason and others we have decided to advance the old family farm into a no-kill cat sanctuary.

Currently we live in Bay City, Michigan and the farm in Coleman, Michigan is in need of renovation in order to achieve our goals. There are 80 acres for our little felines to run around on with 50% forested and 50% fields with a little creek, Upper Bluff Creek, running through the middle. Funding will be used to bring the buildings into compliance for state and federal regulations so we can take in our little ones.

What We Need & What You Get

Where will your contributions be going? First of all we need to get the buildings up to code for this endeavor so we are allocating $3,000 toward roofing, insulation and basic interior renovations for the barn, out-buildings. This is to keep our little ones warm and supplied as well as the volunteers and care takers who will be there so that Cat Nation always has someone present.

Another $3,000 will cover insurance, property taxes and permits so we stay legal to continue our projects.

We anticipate $4,000 for food, water, heating, electricity and other basic needs for those entrusted to our care.

The next $2,000 will be for maintenance costs such as repairs, upkeep and emergencies.

The last $3,000 will cover neutering and spaying for the first 100 cats.

Once we are set up we will be seeking grants and funding at the local, state and federal levels to ensure out cats will always be taken care of.

For those contributing, perks include different levels with various benefits in the CATegories of: Tabby, Spot, Tiger, Mable, Red and Calico. These range from the Certificate of Contribution, Cat Nation Newsletter, a cat toy for your pet to being listed on the wall of contributors, a Cat Nation bandana and t-shirt.

In the event that we don't reach our goal, your contributions will still be honored and we will continue our project, which we already are, with what resources we have available.

While we can't save every cat, we can still save as many as possible from being put down, abused and abandoned.

The Impact

Every day cats (and dogs) are left at pet shelters where they are given about a week to 10 days for retrieval by their owners or adoption. At the end they are euthanized (killed). Do they deserve that, through no fault of their own? NO!

Others drop their unwanted cats off at or near a farm thinking their abandoned pet will have a good life. This is often not the case. The poor creature tries to follow their owner and ends up a road kill, or worse becomes the victim of a wild predator! And some nice looking farms are actually abandoned while others already have so many cats there is simply no room for more.

We at Cat Nation have over 30 years of experience in taking care of such helpless creatures and we do not believe they need to die because of some irresponsible, self-centered human individuals. Each creature is deserving of a life with love, compassion and a sense of security. Cat Nation is set up to provide as much of this as possible.

Risks & Challenges

As with any endeavor, there are risks and challenges. Our main ones are getting things up and running before the cold weather sets in. It is already July so winter is only four months away and we have no time to waste.

Our campaign is set to continue fundraising in July with renovations being run at maximum during August so we can meet all of our legal and physical requirements by September. Unfortunately dumping out cats, kittens and others increases as summer draws to a close. For this reason we need to maximize our work to get things done in time.

Other Ways You Can Help

In case you cannot make a contribution at this time, please tell your family, friends and associates about Cat Nation and this project web page. We are counting on YOU to help out in any way possible.

If you happen to be a pet owner, please treat your little friend with as much love and compassion as possible, after all, they give us unconditional love and trust! Also, if needed, please have your pets spayed or neutered, this helps to reduce the number of unwanted kittens and feral cats in your neighborhood and area. Often local pet shelters have discounted or even free programs in this regard.

Flexible FundingThis campaign has ended and will receive all funds raised.

Campaign Closed

This campaign ended on July 29, 2014

Select a Perk

$25USD

Tabby

Certificate of Contribution and Cat Nation Newsletter.

0
claimed

$50USD

Spot

Certificate of Contribution, autopawprint and Cat Nation Newsletter!

0
claimed

$100USD

Tiger

Certificate of Contribution, autopawprint, Cat Nation Newsletter, name on the building as a contributing Tiger.

0
claimed

$200USD

Marble

Certificate of Contribution, autopawprint, Cat Nation Newsletter, name on the building as a contributing Marble and cat toy for your pet!

0
claimed

$300USD

Red

Certificate of Contribution, autopawprint, Cat Nation Newsletter, name on the building as a contributing Marble, cat toy for your pet and Cat Nation bandana with your name listed as a Red contributor!

0
claimed

$500USD

Calico

Certificate of Contribution, autopawprint, Cat Nation Newsletter, name on the building as a contributing Marble, cat toy for your pet and Cat Nation bandana and t-shirt with your name listed as a Calico contributor!